1. Field of the Invention
The present invention resides in catalytic supports. Particularly, the invention teaches catalytic supports which can be combined with metals suitable for use in either a fluid cracking process or a hydrotreating process.
The catalyst supports herein, when formulated with the requisite metals, are particularly formulated to increase the gasoline yield and quality (i.e., BTX) from gas oils during a cracking process and additionally to catalytically crack petroleum residuals with high selectivity to gasoline production as well as having improved metals tolerance characteristics. Examples of typical metals which can be present during the cracking and/or hydrotreating process include: nickel, vanadium, copper, chromium, iron, cobalt, molybdenum, and inorganic oxides such as the zeolites, etc.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In my U.S. Pat. No. 4,210,560, dated July 1, 1980, I discovered a catalyst support which can be utilized in a fluid catalyst cracking process or a hydrotreating process, depending upon the type metals formulated with the support, comprising a magnesia-alumina-aluminum phosphate matrix characterized after calcination at 500.degree. C. for 10 hours as amorphous and having an average pore radius of from about 10 A to about 300 A, preferably from about 75 A to about 200 A; a surface area ranging from about 100 m.sup.2 /g to about 350 m.sup.2 /g, especially from about 125 m.sup.2 /g to about 250 m.sup.2 /g; a pore volume of from about 0.3 cc/g to about 1.5 cc/g, preferably from about 0.7 cc/g to about 1.2 cc/g; wherein the magnesia-alumina-aluminum phosphate matrix has a mole percent ratio of from about 10:80:10 to about 25:10:65, especially from about 10:55:35 to about 20:35:45, and wherein said matrix retains at least 90 percent of its surface area when the matrix is additionally calcined at a temperature up to about 750.degree. C. for about 10 hours.